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Some thoughts from Whitlock Cabin (Miami-Texas A@M thoughts)...

krashlite1975 said:
I hope we cut Carter Davis a little slack especially since we won. He had one bad kick. The first one the wind took, and the last one he absolutely smoked but just pulled it slightly. Not saying he’s all ACC but did a decent job all year other than today.
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You take the good you take the bad, Davis nailed a game winner v ND, never forget.
 
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TemplarCane said:
If I’m not mistaken, we didn’t have one holding penalty or fall start from the offensive line. The line only had two penalties I think. One offsides and the weak roughing the passer on the final drive.

That’s impressive in front of 107,000 screaming people.

The biggest problem was Dawson’s playcalling for the first half, plus the wind affecting the kicker.

Better play calling in the first half in this game could’ve been 24-3 or worse.
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I was most aggravated by Dawson not going Bro ball 1st and 10 from the 25 after the punt return.

I thought that was a perfect moment to just nut up and see if they could stop us. I don't think they would have and the game could have opened up from there.
 
TheOriginalCane said:
What is this, The Facts of Life? Kickers who miss 3 of 4 frequently lose their jobs.
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Yes, I totally get and agree with, “you’re only as good as your last at bat.” My comment was tailored to the I hope fans aren’t bashing Davis for his misses yesterday.
 
The screen pass to Toney is clearly well diagnosed by opposing teams at this point. I think we need to do a lot more 50/50 and back shoulder passes to Daniels. I can't remember what drive exactly but we were at the goal line and I was begging for a fade to Daniels.
 
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TheOriginalCane said:
What is this, The Facts of Life? Kickers who miss 3 of 4 frequently lose their jobs.
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You could tell that first miss ****ed with his head because it was the perfect kick and then, whoosh!!!! 90 degree hard right turn.

No excuse for the other 2 misses.

I give him the first kick vs Ohio State. If he misses, gotta go with Auburn.
 
Bender said:
Dawson kind of figured it out in the second half what works and what doesn't. He's got a lot of **** thrown against him from me this year, but not today. He immediately said after the game that he ****ed up and I respect that.

He had a plan, I get what he tried to do. Elkos defenses attack downhill, so he tried to soften them up with misdirection and horizontal plays - they were just waiting for that at the expense of missing run fits whenever we ran north and south. If he tried to do it the other way, setting up the perimeter with north and south running, who knows if the game would've been this close.

Ultimately, the last drive was Dawson understanding how the game went and going with the best plays we had. Aggies were dialed in on Fletcher and that opened the run lane for Toney to go around the edge. Play was so well designed and blocked up, nobody came close to touching Toney.
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The end around to Marion for a four yard loss after gaining a first down on the play prior was a head scratcher. The plays weren’t bad plays, the timing was bad. No set up, just bam here goes Toney! Let’s get back to involving all of the weapons and we should be good to go.
 
Agreed on not running everything through Toney, let him be a decoy more and spread the ball around. The screen to the short side of the field on a critical down was a bad play call, have to flip that play. And we need to attack the middle of the field more and take a chance with Beck spreading the rock. I know he struggles with the middle of the field but we won’t beat OSU without it.

Also on the Toney wildcat pass that was incomplete Beck was wide open on the throw back like Cuse so I hope we pull that out again.

And for the kicking, the wind was insane Davis’s first try looked really good played the wind how he wanted but no one could anticipate it going 30 yards right. The rest were mental after that just like golf. I wouldn’t be worried in a dome.

If Beck can throw the intermediate routes and Dawson doesn’t rely his whole scheme around Toney we could win and be the best team in the country
 
Ryanmilli said:
That was a masterpiece on defense. An all-timer.

A&M has a really good offense. I’ve seen dozens of games at ND Stadium (maybe around 100) and A&M this year was one of the most dynamic offenses I’ve seen. Concepcion and Craver are absolute burners. Reed can obviously run so well and he can sling it when he has good protection.

We did a great job of limiting them—never would’ve predicted we’d hold them to 3 points.

The way our DL gets pressure with 4 and the way they get off blocks to completely shut down the run is a sight to behold.

The defense seemed like it was on the field a ton and it was remarkable to me how they not only didn’t wear down, but seemed to get stronger as the game went on.
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The D was on the field a lot. I think they had over 33 minutes TOP. They were putting in a lot of work out there. Our D line is stacked with future NFLers, half of them being first day picks.

Also, I don't think it can be said enough. Our O line faces this D line every day in practice, and vice versa. Literally, the toughest competition they face is in practice. It's just up to the coaches to draw up plays and put the players in position to score more points than the other team. And, to stop the other team.
 
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k9cane said:
It was frustration, then elation at Kyle Field. As I'm back here in my AirBNB cabin (so this is how Abraham Lincoln hung out) in Bryan Texas Im still in a bit of awe. The #Canes beat a game and rugged Texas A@M Aggies squad by a score of 10-3 in a game that was not really a masterpiece but as a UM fan, it ended up looking like the Mona Lisa.

Survive and advance. That's what the Mario Cristobal Hurricanes did today in hostile(yet still, cordial territory --- more on that later) today. No, this isn't a national title win, but after 20 years of not being 'back', make no doubt about it, this is a milestone victory for the program.

Miami took another step to becoming a football 'progrum' today. There's no denying it's impact. The euphoria I was a part of in section in 131 in Kyle was unforgettable. Again, this is just a step, but one that should be appreciated and enjoyed by our fan base.

Some thoughts on the game...

- I love the new Malachi Toney-centric offense, but I thought it went a bit too far today by Shannon Dawson. Miami seemed to be better off just running their base stuff and letting Carson Beck throw on early downs, and letting Mark Fletcher control the game. It's one thing to run gadgets, but when you force them inorganically it disrupts the flow of your offense. The offense I saw today will not get the job done moving forward in the playoffs.

Just my view -- and Im just a fan -- some of those Toney plays would've been more effective if he was more of a decoy.

Today was a day to just run your basic stuff and just execute it consistently - and mix in the Mali-cat.

- Carter Davis became the FAU version whose percentage last season was a good batting average. He had been so good up until this point this season. As Toney scored late, I wondered if Miami scored too quickly, but at the same time, when you have a kicker who misses 3 kicks in a game, you can't be choosy

- Speaking of Fletcher, this guy etched his name in Hurricane lore today. He ran hard and came up with that big run late. I've felt that he gets too much heat for who he isn't ( Edgerrin James, Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee, etc) instead of being appreciated for who he is -- a reliable, solid chain moving guy. And when he busted that long run this was confirmation that he isn't just a JAG. No more slander on this young man's name. They don't win that game without number 4 on offense

- When Toney had that fumble near midfield with the game tied halfway through the 4th, it felt like Miami was going to lose didn't it? Like, 'here we go again'. But the defense bowed up and created a stop. Corey Heatherman has been an absolute Godsend for Miami.

Damari Brown wasn't dressed but Keointe Scott returned and he was active as always. The Aggies have a speedy and talented set of WR's and they gave up some plays but held their own. Muhammad Toure just absolutely sold out late on that pass to Ruben Owens, knocking himself out. Several of our guys hobbled off the field and they kept battling.

- Finally, a salute to Aggie nation and College Station. A great college football atmosphere and some of the nicest and most hospitable people you will ever meet. They created a great settting on game day. Gig'em to you guys.
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Good stuff, well thought out.
 
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